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Close to 2,000 people gathered in London's Trafalgar Square on Saturday in a mass celebration of the rec

Crowds remained in Trafalgar square well into the evening on Saturday night, with reports that police are planning to attempt to clear the lively crowds.
The guardian is live blogging the event here.
Agence-France Presse reports:
Former coal miners involved in the year-long strike against the Iron Lady's government in the 1980s joined far-left activists and students to drink to the Iron Lady's demise.
An effigy of the former Conservative leader was carried through the crowd beneath Nelson's Column, complete with her trademark string of pearls and bouffant hair made from orange plastic bags.
There was a strong police presence for the demonstration, after trouble erupted at several impromptu street celebrations following Thatcher's death from a stroke on Monday at the age of 87.
But the atmosphere was more street carnival than riot, with people of all ages -- many of them barely born when she left office in 1990 -- dancing, playing tambourines, blowing whistles and horns. [...]
Associated Press reports:
As a handbag-toting Thatcher effigy made its way down the stairs in front of the National Gallery, the crowd erupted into cries of "Maggie! Maggie! Maggie! Dead! Dead! Dead!" and sang lyrics from the "Wizard of Oz" ditty "Ding Dong! The Witch is Dead."
Hundreds of people clutched their umbrellas in the rain between Nelson's Column and the National Gallery on the square. The mood appeared festive and the celebration was peaceful, although there was a minor scuffle with police at one point. Official crowd estimates weren't immediately available.
However, the crowd wasn't entirely joyous, as miners, socialists, Travellers, students and anti-capitalist protesters were also there to demonstrate against Margaret Thatcher's legacy and the all to familiar austerity policies of the nation's current coalition government, the Guardian reports.
The anti-austerity group UK Uncut carried out a number of coinciding protests throughout the day.
At one point around 200 people gathered outside the home of Baron David Freud, minister for welfare reform, to protest against the recently proposed "bedroom tax" and "benefits cap."
People played drums, sat in the street on beds and duvets and held up signs reading: "Who wants to evict a millionaire?"
Police are still expecting large crowds of protesters at Thatcher's funeral on Wednesday, when her coffin will be taken to St Paul's Cathedral through streets lined with members of the armed forces.

Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Jacob Chamberlain is a former staff writer for Common Dreams. He is the author of Migrant Justice in the Age of Removal. His website is www.jacobpchamberlain.com.

Crowds remained in Trafalgar square well into the evening on Saturday night, with reports that police are planning to attempt to clear the lively crowds.
The guardian is live blogging the event here.
Agence-France Presse reports:
Former coal miners involved in the year-long strike against the Iron Lady's government in the 1980s joined far-left activists and students to drink to the Iron Lady's demise.
An effigy of the former Conservative leader was carried through the crowd beneath Nelson's Column, complete with her trademark string of pearls and bouffant hair made from orange plastic bags.
There was a strong police presence for the demonstration, after trouble erupted at several impromptu street celebrations following Thatcher's death from a stroke on Monday at the age of 87.
But the atmosphere was more street carnival than riot, with people of all ages -- many of them barely born when she left office in 1990 -- dancing, playing tambourines, blowing whistles and horns. [...]
Associated Press reports:
As a handbag-toting Thatcher effigy made its way down the stairs in front of the National Gallery, the crowd erupted into cries of "Maggie! Maggie! Maggie! Dead! Dead! Dead!" and sang lyrics from the "Wizard of Oz" ditty "Ding Dong! The Witch is Dead."
Hundreds of people clutched their umbrellas in the rain between Nelson's Column and the National Gallery on the square. The mood appeared festive and the celebration was peaceful, although there was a minor scuffle with police at one point. Official crowd estimates weren't immediately available.
However, the crowd wasn't entirely joyous, as miners, socialists, Travellers, students and anti-capitalist protesters were also there to demonstrate against Margaret Thatcher's legacy and the all to familiar austerity policies of the nation's current coalition government, the Guardian reports.
The anti-austerity group UK Uncut carried out a number of coinciding protests throughout the day.
At one point around 200 people gathered outside the home of Baron David Freud, minister for welfare reform, to protest against the recently proposed "bedroom tax" and "benefits cap."
People played drums, sat in the street on beds and duvets and held up signs reading: "Who wants to evict a millionaire?"
Police are still expecting large crowds of protesters at Thatcher's funeral on Wednesday, when her coffin will be taken to St Paul's Cathedral through streets lined with members of the armed forces.

Jacob Chamberlain is a former staff writer for Common Dreams. He is the author of Migrant Justice in the Age of Removal. His website is www.jacobpchamberlain.com.

Crowds remained in Trafalgar square well into the evening on Saturday night, with reports that police are planning to attempt to clear the lively crowds.
The guardian is live blogging the event here.
Agence-France Presse reports:
Former coal miners involved in the year-long strike against the Iron Lady's government in the 1980s joined far-left activists and students to drink to the Iron Lady's demise.
An effigy of the former Conservative leader was carried through the crowd beneath Nelson's Column, complete with her trademark string of pearls and bouffant hair made from orange plastic bags.
There was a strong police presence for the demonstration, after trouble erupted at several impromptu street celebrations following Thatcher's death from a stroke on Monday at the age of 87.
But the atmosphere was more street carnival than riot, with people of all ages -- many of them barely born when she left office in 1990 -- dancing, playing tambourines, blowing whistles and horns. [...]
Associated Press reports:
As a handbag-toting Thatcher effigy made its way down the stairs in front of the National Gallery, the crowd erupted into cries of "Maggie! Maggie! Maggie! Dead! Dead! Dead!" and sang lyrics from the "Wizard of Oz" ditty "Ding Dong! The Witch is Dead."
Hundreds of people clutched their umbrellas in the rain between Nelson's Column and the National Gallery on the square. The mood appeared festive and the celebration was peaceful, although there was a minor scuffle with police at one point. Official crowd estimates weren't immediately available.
However, the crowd wasn't entirely joyous, as miners, socialists, Travellers, students and anti-capitalist protesters were also there to demonstrate against Margaret Thatcher's legacy and the all to familiar austerity policies of the nation's current coalition government, the Guardian reports.
The anti-austerity group UK Uncut carried out a number of coinciding protests throughout the day.
At one point around 200 people gathered outside the home of Baron David Freud, minister for welfare reform, to protest against the recently proposed "bedroom tax" and "benefits cap."
People played drums, sat in the street on beds and duvets and held up signs reading: "Who wants to evict a millionaire?"
Police are still expecting large crowds of protesters at Thatcher's funeral on Wednesday, when her coffin will be taken to St Paul's Cathedral through streets lined with members of the armed forces.
